Small Town Blue (jeans)

I never really thought of Anoka as a small town. It was just Anoka, a place with cute shops and a nice waterfront. Case closed. But then we moved our offices to the downtown. Possibly the best part of having a storefront is being part of the retail community here. We have the best neighbors, and getting to know them has taught me a whole lot about quality customer service.

Here’s a perfect example: we love Jenson’s and would shop there for the excellent selection of clothes if for nothing else, but the service there is nothing short of amazing. Just this week, an intrepid associate brought Cheryl a pair of pants to try on. That’s right—she walked down the street with a pair of pants our owner had set aside, just so Cheryl could try them on at her convenience. If that isn’t above-and-beyond customer service, I don’t know what is!

The greatest thing about independent retailers, in my humble opinion, is their ability to have independent thought. That sounds blatantly obvious until you consider the utter lack of independent thought at many chains. Let me be clear: I have nothing against chains and certainly shop at them for many of the necessities of life. And it’s not the fault of the employees that they can’t make decisions on their own. They’re not allowed! I’m sure there’s bundles of research supporting the efficacy of such top-down thinking, but it sure loses something in the human connection. Can you imagine a Macy’s associate walking out the door with a pair of pants for a Cinnabon employee in the mall to try on? The alarms would go crazy!

Last night, a companion and I dined at my absolute favorite restaurant. Our waiter smiled when he saw me, took out his order pad, and said, “Bean burrito and side of rice, right?” Another waiter, who wasn’t even serving us but who knows us all too well, brought frothy cerveza over without needing to ask. It’s like walking into Cheers! Before I get distracted thinking about that tasty dinner (mmm), the point is it’s incredibly nice to feel like you’re not just a number to a company, but a valued customer/participant/neighbor and even friend. That’s definitely something we’ve found in Anoka, and I hope you find it at your local shops, too. If not, come to ours—we’ll share!

T